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Office Of Research Integrity Finally Has New Director

Don Wright has been the Acting Director of the Office of Research Integrity (ORI) at the Department of Health and Human Services since May 2014, when his predecessor (and successor, as it happens) David Wright resigned. But the Department of Health and Human Services has confirmed (H/T ScienceInsider) to Retraction Watch that Don Wright can end his *second* term as Acting Director at the end of this month.

Taking the reins at ORI is Kathy Partin (H/T Report on Research Compliance – paywall), currently the director of Colorado State University’s (CSU) Research Integrity & Compliance Review Office. She’s a professor of biomedical sciences as well as assistant vice president for research at CSU. She has been working in training researchers on responsible research conduct since 1997, and involved in misconduct investigations since 2002.

David Wright left the ORI, unloading on the office in both his resignation letter and a subsequent interview. As it took nearly two years to find a permanent replacement, it seems that Kathy Partin has a challenging job in front of her.